It’s no secret that we love our sports here in India. Cricket, especially, ignites passionate reactions, cheers from fans and high-voltage energy around the country, when our team is doing well. On the flipside, hearing of instances where fans have hurled stones at players’ homes or burned effigies is not uncommon either. With the advent of social media, it’s become easier for the disgruntled fan to have his voice heard by their favourite celebrities and sportspeople. Unfortunately, the veil of anonymity also helps a nastier side of trolls to emerge, targeting not just the sportsmen, but also their families.
Take for example the case of Mayanti Langer. The famed television presenter and sports journalist has been bearing the brunt of troll attacks, ever since she married Indian cricketer Stuart Binny in 2012. Stuart’s recent performance in T20 match versus West Indies saw him give away 32 runs in the single over that he bowled, which eventually ended with India losing the game by one run. Incessantly harassed by trolls who tagged her, Mayanti wrote an open letter from her Twitter account to shut the targeted pestering down.
“I hope no one ever demands the deaths of your loved ones or sends violent images threatening the same,” she wrote. “Taunting me with suicide is shameful…I hope you find love and loyalty. By suggesting divorce, suggests you haven’t. I’ve been working since I was 18. Instead of wasting time calling me a gold-digger, go get a job and earn the right to support your self and your families.” She concluded the letter, writing, “I hope bullying us made you feel better about yourselves, cause otherwise was it really worth it?”
Mayanti’s is not an isolated case of a spouse or family member of a sportspeson being made a victim of trolling on social media. Cricketer Virat Kohli too slammed fans, who pinned the blame of a bad day at work for him on his on-again, of-again girlfriend, Anushka Sharma. “Shame on those people who have been having a go at Anushka for the longest time… Shame on blaming and making fun of her, when she has no control over what I do with my sport. If anything, she has only motivated me and given me more positivity,” he wrote.
Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma
Priya Thalur, wife of Indian pacer Lakshmipathy Balaji rues the fact that the sportspeople barely even get time to spend with their families. “It’s really unfair to target us (wives and girlfriends). At the end of the day, it’s their game and they put in a lot of hard work. Some of them don’t even have proper funding but they play the game just for their undying passion,” she says. “We, as wives are supporting them with all our heart. Half the time we don’t get time to spend with them — it’s hard on us too. If the trollers get to see the hard work and time they invest in the game, they probably wouldn’t blame wives and girlfriends.”
One can either choose to turn a blind eye or have a laugh at trolls sometimes, feels Prithi Ashwin, wife of Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. “I’m pretty active on Twitter, but fortunately for me, I’ve never been targeted,” she reveals. “I do agree that we all would feel the pressure and I would always want the best for Ashwin, irrespective of whether he’s in good form or not. I feel it’s important to choose the things that you let affect you — be it online or off it. As far as unnecessary trolling goes, just ignore or have a good laugh at it.”
Prithi and Ravichandran Ashwin
Badminton player Jwala Gutta minces no words when she talks about trolling becoming a thing of vogue. “It’s always good to know people expect things from you, because that shows you’ve achieved something. However, trolling has become fashionable nowadays. I mostly ignore the trolls, but sometimes it gets annoying, especially when people question a sportsperson’s integrity.” While wives and girlfriends are easy targets, former Indian athlete, Anju Bobby George groans that even her husband, who is also her coach, has come under fire for her performance at times.
“Robert Bobby George is one of the best coaches in the world for long jump,” she says. “He is India’s youngest Dronacharya awardee. Yet, there have been times people have said that if Anju trained under another coach, her performance would be better; she’s not leaving him only because she’s married to him.” Tech editor and avid social media user Ivan Mehta explains that it’s up to websites to handle abuse.
“Anonymity has always been a part of the Internet, but social media networks should be equipped to purge the content that attacks people. With websites like 4chan, both users who indulge in abusing are both anonymous. However, with Twitter, only one party has the benefit of anonymity. A joke or two is fine, but attacking them personally is crossing the line - no one would appreciate being on the receiving end of it.”
The anonymity is what makes the trolling even more annoying, says Jawala. “You can look at the IDs and figure that these names are not real,” she explains. I think it’s a form of entertainment for them, or maybe they get excited if they get a reply from a celebrity. My parents aren’t very active on social media, but yes this affects them, so they mostly choose to ignore it.”
Anju believes that people themselves should be more sensitive about what they write to sportspersons online. “Now, everyone seems to have a platform to raise their views. Someone puts up a post and others follow it blindly. Remember, an opinion can nurture or kill a person. The sportsperson has a family too, so people need to be vigilant while making comments,” she signs off.
